Sugar: the sweetest thing?

Are you partial to a sugar surge or three to get you through the day? Lisa Millard consults an expert on giving up the sweet stuff. Cold turkey or gently does it?

I’ve suspected sugar to be the root of many evils for quite a while, but the sweet comfort of a sparkling lump dropped into a frothy coffee has been too good to give up. Then there’s the ice-cold can of a certain lip-smackin’ drink consumed with glee some afternoons and, rarely, but it has happened, a doorstep sandwich combining fresh, doughy bread and peanut butter. It’s time to get a grip.

Enter Dalia Maori, a registered dietician and holistic nutritionist; we’re in safe hands. The registered bit shows Dalia’s clinical qualifications (she’s about to start a new position for a hospital in Essex as a specialist clinical dietician for paediatric diabetes) and the holistic part points towards her intuitive approach. She’s combined both for five years consulting clients at The Therapy Room, Cambridge, and, when she’s not talking nutrition, you’ll find her running around after two young children at her Cambridge home.

“I improve people’s health through nutrition,” says Dalia, who is 34, alarmingly pretty, petite, exquisitely proportioned and boasts a complexion most of us only dream of.

And she’s still breastfeeding a little one three times through the night. “There’s no pills, no diets, no quackery, no deprivation and no quick fixes, just effort, inspiration, organisation and discovery.”

I can’t help but comment on her healthy glow. “Actually, I’m insane with sleep deprivation,” she smiles cheerily, ordering a rooibos tea. “I fall off the wagon sometimes – everyone does.”

So what’s her poison? “I eat dark chocolate or thick, buttery shortbread biscuits,” she smiles, wickedly. “We have to set ourselves realistic goals.”

I sip my latte (bad girl) with no sugar (not-so-bad girl), and quiz Dalia about booting a sugar habit.

Q: I really want to give up sugar. Do you think this is a good thing? Will it improve my health?

A: Giving up sugar will undoubtedly improve your health. That is, if you replace your sugary foods with whole, natural foods and stay away from artificial sweeteners. When giving up sugar, beware of ‘sugar free’ labelling on processed foods – reading between the lines this means ‘I am highly processed and contain artificial goodness-knows-what and certainly cannot be considered a health food’. In short, instead of saying you’re giving up sugar, say you’re moving over to a wholefood diet.

Q: Will giving up sugar be hard to do?

A: How hard giving up sugar is depends on your personality and the behavioural support system you’ve set up for yourself in order to succeed in the change. This means having replacement, delicious snacks at the ready in the times when you’d usually reach for your faithful biscuits, and understanding which triggers lead you to reach for your sugary highs. Some people are very good at change once they’ve made the decision, others need to take it slower – all of which is perfectly fine: knowing yourself is a key part of any successful nutrition journey.

Q: I think eating too much sugar contributes to my feeling tired and sluggish. And I think it is, in part, connected to my vicious PMT. Can a food substance be the root of such evils?

A: Absolutely. The difference in women’s PMT on sugar and off sugar (and caffeine) is quite amazing, too. The short-lived highs that come with eating sugary foods lead to big crashes (when we crave more sugar) where our energy levels and general mood can be stormy and unpredictable. I recommend for all women with PMT to really watch their sugar, caffeine and chocolate intake in the two weeks leading up to their period.

Q: If I do give it up, what benefits can I look forward to, and what is a realistic time frame for this?

A: You can look forward to immediate benefits – some subtle and some more obvious. If giving sugar up cold turkey, you may face approximately ten days of cravings and not feeling very well – but after that, enter a lovely zone where your tastebuds feel refreshed and fresh produce tastes even better. If gradually weaning yourself off, you can expect to desire less and less of the sugary foods as time goes by, and find it much easier to be attracted to healthful, nutritious foods. Within two to four weeks of giving up sugar you will feel like a different person and people will tell you you look more vibrant.